Did you sing in your school choir?
Yes, my parents kind of forced me into it when I was around ten years old. I never liked it… probably because it was music I wasn’t into.

What was the first concert you attended?
It was either a punk rock show on Halloween or Bon Jovi. I can’t remember which…

What was the first record you bought?
With my own money… Guns ‘n Roses - “APPETITE FOR DESTRUCTION.”

Did you collect anything as a child?
Hockey cards and stickers.

What bands were you in before 3 Inches of Blood and did you record anything?
Played bass in AllFather(black/death metal), recorded a demo and CD EP. Did vocals for a death metal band called Black Vein Prophecy and recorded a demo. Played bass for a hardcore band called Instill and recorded a demo and 7” vinyl EP. Every band I was in before these bands was pretty elementary stuff.

The first self-titled EP came out in 2001. You were brought in just to work on background vocals, is that true?
Initially, yes. But after hearing the first song I put vocals on, they were so into it that they asked me to put my vocals on the rest of the songs and I joined the band.

If that is true, how did you end up in the band?
They asked me after doing the demo, so I moved to Vancouver to be in the band.

The first full-length release called “Battlecry Under A Winter Sun,” came in 2002. How long did that take to record and do you have any good stories during the recording?
We recorded “BATTLECRY” over the period of a few months… taking some breaks of a few weeks here and there. There was nothing unusual about the process in general but we brought in a bunch of friends to the studio to do “gang vocals” and everyone got really drunk and screamed their balls off.

Your vocals sound a lot like Rob Halford (Judas Priest). Have many fans told you that?
Yes, I get that comparison all the time and it’s an honor to be mentioned in the same breath as the metal god.

How did you come up with the “Viking Metal” theme or would you consider it something else? Jamie wrote all the “Viking” themed material from the 5-song EP era. I wouldn’t call us a “Viking Metal” band just based on that. We try and write about new themes all the time and derive inspiration from many sources.

The new CD “Advance and Vanquish” is fantastic. “Deadly Sinners” is an amazing track. Did you think that song would be your breakout song?
It had a weird and special feeling about it when it was finished being written and my suspicions were confirmed when Justin Hawkins of The Darkness said, “That’s a hit!”

Since that success, has it opened more doors for the band?
I wouldn’t really know. I mean, we’re just doing our own thing and hopefully people will dig what we’re playing.

This new CD can be big in both heavy metal and thrash metal. When you go out on tour, do you play more to the “metal -heads” or the “thrasher” crowd?
It ’s a mix of a lot of types of people… not just “metal -heads” and “thrashers” but also skaters/snowboarders, crust punk, and hardcore kids. Basically people who are into heavy metal.

If you had the chance to go out on tour with another headliner who would that be?
I’m just glad to be a touring musician in any way.

What can we see in the future for 3 Inches of Blood?
Hopefully keeping busy by touring a lot and writing new songs in our spare time.